In 2019, we launched the "Shibuya Entertainment Tech Promotion Project" together (by three companies with the Shibuya Ward Tourism Association), sublimated into the "Shibuya 5G Entertainment Project" in January 2020, and in May of the same year, Corona Sorrow. Future Design Shibuya (FDS) and KDDI have led to the release of the Shibuya-ku official metaverse "Virtual Shibuya".
This time, we asked Mr. Nakama of KDDI, who has worked with such an advanced project, to look back on his efforts so far and talk about his future prospects.
Flexibility to capture changes in the world and act quickly
Let's take a brief look back at Osada FDS and KDDI.
Nakama Well, we joined FDS as a special regular member company in 2018, just the year before we launched "5G". Initially, 5G was supposed to use a frequency band different from the conventional 4G, and due to its characteristics, it was said that practical operation was difficult only in a limited area. The fact that it can be used only in a specific area means that, for example, a map service that requires information on all areas is not a measure suitable for 5G, and it is necessary to consider and implement a service that suits its characteristics. There was. Under such circumstances, I wanted to think about 5G and "town", and it needed to be a city with a high amount of heat, and I wanted to express new entertainment together with Shibuya.
I am confident in the field of entertainment as KDDI's identity, and I have a strong feeling that there are many things we can do when trying to do something by combining technology with the entertainment culture city of Shibuya. I made a love call to Shibuya Ward. As a result, the "Shibuya Entertainment Tech Promotion Project" started, and it seems that it has gradually led to "Virtual Shibuya".
Osada At first, I didn't expect to create a metaverse = virtual city linked to the city, but what about?
Nakama: There have been times when the direction has changed a lot since Korona-ka.
Originally, we all wanted to liven up the city of Shibuya using AR, which puts digital into the real world, but at the same time, it became a Korona-ka, and people couldn't come to the city in the first place. In such a situation, "Virtual Shibuya" happened to be addicted to the Metaverse initiative to create digital in digital, so the process of working with Shibuya Ward deepened in a way different from the initial assumption. was.
Osada That's right. Is there any part of KDDI's other businesses whose policies have changed in line with the changes of the times since Corona?
Nakama We are a company with no policy. Where that is good. In the first place, we are basically a company that does not do things like zero-ichi new business planning in-house.
What to do is to start a new business with a partnering strategy such as investing in people who specialize in each field of the world or joining hands. In recent words, it's "open innovation." That's why we don't compete on our own, but rather flexibility is important. We do not want to do what we want to do, but we can quickly grasp what is popular in the world and make it bigger or universal by working together with a telecommunications company called KDDI. I think that is our role. I think our strength is that we can act as a catalyst and roll out the base to men and women of all ages in Japan.
So, there are so many things that have changed since the Korona-ka, which is natural. So I think the recent changes in the times are very positive.
In the world's best virtual Shibuya that nurtures the seeds of culture in the Metaverse
——What are your thoughts on the “Shibuya 5G Entertainment Project” in the near future?
Isn't it Virtual Shibuya that came with Nakama FDS and achieved the most visible results? That's why I think that the axis will be virtual Shibuya, and when I come here, I would like to make virtual Shibuya the best in the world.
At present, I think that Virtual Shibuya is an "urban event-type platform" where people can set up something from here, but in essence, the Metaverse is the original real thing. I don't think it's ideal to visit only when there is an event, as the city does. Shibuya is supposed to be visited every day by saying "Where are you going? Are you going to Shibuya for the time being?" With your friends, so I want to make virtual Shibuya such a city.
For that purpose, it is necessary to create a structure in which people call people. Rather than having us come to Virtual Shibuya, I would like to change to a structure in which individuals gather in Virtual Shibuya on their own initiative and people call in. I hope this year will be a turning point to challenge such things.
——What are you specifically thinking about?
It doesn't mean that Nakama people can call people suddenly. For example, in the real city of Shibuya, when you think about why young people started to gather, there are select shops that are very particular about Shibuya, beauty salons and record shops, so-called "charisma clerk". There are people who are particular about it, and people who are cool, so people come to that place. I think the structure is that general people gather more in places where people with high fashion sensitivity and culture sensitivity gather.
In this respect, I think it is important for the first person with high cultural sensitivity to settle in virtual Shibuya. For example, I would like to create an environment where people who usually perform and chat on livestreams can be attracted and enjoyed.
Osada What do you expect from Shibuya Ward and FDS?
Nakama When it comes to creating a city in virtual space, how do you actually make it, because it's virtual. It doesn't have to be Shibuya, and you can create a city freely, but we have the axis of how to make Shibuya's street culture and entertainment culture reproducible in a virtual way. I want to do it without bra. Of course, that can't be done by our own power, and as I said, our role is to roll out widely. If it is our role to cultivate the seeds of Shibuya's culture and roll them out widely into the Metaverse space, the first seeds will be passed through FDS and Shibuya Ward to the people who support the culture in the field. I want you to pull it.
Also, there are many FDS partner companies that represent Shibuya culture, so I would like everyone to input more and more seeds. We want to focus on how we can make it universal.
Adapt to the environment and keep updating yourself until yesterday
——How many years in the future do you think of the future of virtual Shibuya in Mr. Nakama's mind?
Nakama: There is a saying, "I wish I could be like this." To be honest, I don't know when that is because it is a part that must be changed according to the situation in the world. For example, even with the same Metaverse experience, what you can feel with a smartphone is completely different from what you can feel with a VR headset. The service will change depending on where you put it, but it will change again when XR goggles like glasses that are lighter than headsets and do not bother you even if you wear them for 2 to 3 hours. But I can't judge this at this stage.
I have an image of what an "experience that can only be done virtually" that people in the world can enjoy, but what steps and timelines do we realize it? I think it's about adapting to the environment of.
Osada After all, you are thoroughly committed to responding flexibly to the movements of the world.
Nakama That's right, but I think one of the goals ahead is "from Shibuya to the world."
Digital has the advantage that it is easy to spread an idea universally with reproducibility. Analog things can't be spread out at once at the same time, but with digital things, for example, I think we can transfer what we did in Shibuya to other cities in Japan and overseas.
They have set such a goal, but have not decided on its methodology. Actually, I think about the details, but in the end it doesn't happen. The world is constantly changing. The basic stance is to update it every day when things don't go as planned.
I always tell young employees to "deny me yesterday." It's the so-called "morning decree break". It's generally thought that it's no good to say something like this in the morning but change what you say in the evening. However, the technology in the world is changing steadily, and the environment is changing due to things like corona, but it is strange not to stubbornly change, saying, "No, this is because I decided." Always update our thinking to the latest situation. By continuing to deny yourself in the past and updating plans and ideas, you believe that you can provide services to people in the world in a timely manner. It's thorough, so it's very flexible.
Secretary General Dialogue Series
Kazuhiko Nakama – KDDI CORPORATION | Does culture take root in the Metaverse? The importance of catching the times and continuing to change
